Drug Crimes

Drug crime law is a subset of criminal law, which deals with illegal possession, use, manufacture and sale of prohibited drugs. Drug crime law also deals with other criminal offenses associated with the possession, use, manufacture, and sale of illegal drugs. Illegal drugs include both "street" drugs and drugs specified under the Federal Controlled Substances Act of 1970.

Because drug crimes are "victimless" crimes, it has been proven a daunting task for both the federal and state level to enforce the law. Unless drug use has contributed to a violent crime, it is difficult for the government to run after the perpetrators because there is no "victim" except the user or the trader. Under the CSA, the federal government regulates the legal production, possession, and distribution of controlled substances. Some drugs listed under the CSA are allowed to be used and sold provided that they are for specific reasons, such as medical use. "Street" drugs, which are all deemed illegal in the United States, include cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine.

All drug charges are considered felonies. The gravity, however, of the offense is determined upon the kind of drug involved, the quantity found with the offender, and the offender's intent to sell or use the drugs. The federal government, as well as the state government, is strict in enforcing anti-illegal drugs law that the penalties accompanying drug charges stiffer than the penalties for most crimes. Moreover, conviction for drug trafficking, especially if the trafficking is large scale, also leads to denial of federal benefits and forfeiture of real and personal property.

One of the most common issues arising from drug crimes is illegal stop and search or frisk. Police officers have the authority to stop and frisk suspicious individuals but because the Bill of Rights limits the government's encroachment upon personal liberties, in this case, the right against unnecessary search and seizures and unlawful issuance of warrants, those suspected of a drug crime can argue that they were illegally searched and stopped by law enforcement agencies. In defending a person accused of a drug crime, a drug crime law attorney must take note of the details prior to the arrest of the accused as the procedure as to how the accused was apprehended may lead to his or her acquittal.

With the rising incidences of interstate and inter-country drug trafficking, the federal government created an extensive web of agencies, enforcements, and programs meant to stop the proliferation of drug use in the United States. The government has identified, based on statistics, specific areas and ethnic groups where drug use and trade proliferates. It is thus not uncommon for law enforcement agencies to target impoverished neighborhoods or some ethnic groups in their surveillance. Some of these surveillance activities, however, result to ethnically-biased arrests and accusations. A person who is wrongfully accused of a drug crime badly needs the talent of a drug crime law expert as it is difficult to battle against a government that is bent on working towards a drug-free and safe society.

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Child Abuse Law - Legal Information and Resources

Child Abuse Law

Child abuse refers to the physical, mental, and sexual abuse or exploitation of the child, and the parents' or guardians' neglect of the child. The Federal Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act specifically defines child abuse and neglect, and the accompanying penalties for specific violations. A "child" is legally defined as any person younger than 18 years old or who is not an emancipated minor. While federal legislation sets minimum standards for states that accept federal funding, each state provides its own definitions of maltreatment within civil and criminal statutes.

Physical abuse is easily identified in child abuse cases. The more difficult difficult forms of child abuse come in the form of mental and sexual abuse. Federal legislation defines "mental injury" to include harm inflicted to a child's psychological or intellectual functioning, demonstrated by a change in the child's behavior, emotional response or cognition. Determination of mental child abuse needs the assessment of psychiatrist as these, excluding in cases of outward aggressive behavior, are not usually outwardly manifested. This form of child abuse needs the assessment of psychiatrists. Sexual abuse is the most difficult form of abuse to prove because a child typically shies away from disclosing this kind of abuse for fear of embarrassment or retaliation by the parent. Sexual abuse includes the coercion of a child to engage in sexually explicit conduct, rape, molestation, prostitution and other forms of sexual exploitation. Sexual abuse also includes incest with children. Sexual abuse further include sexual intercourse, sexual contact, and other acts of lasciviousness towards the child.

Neglect, under federal legislation, is a parent or a guardian's failure to provide the basic necessities of a child, such as food, clothing, shelter, medical care, and education. Neglect should also result to the child being in seriously endangered. The federal and state government have in place programs assisting parents in taking care of children as poverty as the most common defense parents have for neglecting children.

One of the issues in relation to child abuse is the often fine line between discipline and abuse. Federal legislation provides that child abuse excludes discipline provided that the discipline is reasonable, moderate in degree, and does not constitute cruelty. Federal legislation enumerates the differences between discipline and child abuse. Nevertheless, as persons who are responsible for the upbringing of the child, parents or caretakers, at spur of the moments, often employ corporal punishment to teach the child a lesson for any wrongdoing. Corporal punishment is typically frowned upon, regardless of the cultural context of such, and is the subject of many child abuse cases throughout the country. The federal government encourages positive discipline rather than corporal punishment.

Federal and state governments are in concerted efforts in implementing anti-child abuse laws by making visible campaigns against such acts. Anyone who has knowledge of any form of abuse may report to the local police department. While in joint efforts aimed to put a stop to abusive acts, federal and state child abuse laws have specific jurisdictions and may not interfere with each other. When facing a charge of child abuse, the defendant must hire an expert child abuse law attorney to defend himself as an ordinary person may not be able to discern which laws to use to protect him. Both federal and state governments are zealous in their anti-child abuse programs, and courts are not lenient on child abusers.

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